2 groups clash after Vallabhbhai Patel's statue pulled down in Ujjain
Ujjain (PTI): Members of two communities clashed and pelted each other with stones after the statue of former deputy prime minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was pulled down by some persons in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain district on Thursday morning, officials said.
Heavy security has been deployed in Makdone area, located about 50 km from the district headquarters, where the incident took place, they said.
In a video of the incident which went viral on social media, a group of people were seen pulling down the statue with a tractor.
They wanted that a statue of Dr B R Ambedkar be installed at the site, instead of Patel's, police sources said.
The statue of Patel was installed at the site close to the Makdone bus stand late Wednesday night, they said.
Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural) Nitesh Bhargav told PTI over phone that they were inquiring when the statue was installed.
An investigation is underway after which cases would be registered, he said.
Asked about how many people were injured in the stone-pelting, he said, "No one has reported to us about it so far."
"Additional police force has been deployed. The situation is completely under control. We have removed the stones that were hurled by (members of) the two communities from the spot in Makdone area," Bhargav said.
So far, prohibitory order (to ban assembly of people) has not been issued, he said.
Clash erupted b/n members of #Dalits & #Patidar [#Patel] community in #MadhyaPradesh's #Ujjain last night.#Patidars, associated with the ruling party, wanted to build status of #SardarPatel. On the other hand Dalits want statue of #BRAmbedkar.
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) January 25, 2024
When members of #Dalit community… pic.twitter.com/GTmnrTUp9I
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Voting underway for local body elections in Gujarat
Ahmedabad (PTI): Voting got underway on Sunday morning for elections to several local bodies in Gujarat, including 15 municipal corporations and 84 municipalities.
Polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm, as per the schedule announced by the State Election Commission.
The elections are being held for 15 municipal corporations, including Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats, making it one of the largest electoral exercises in the state.
A total of 9,992 candidates are in the fray, with more than 4.18 crore voters eligible to exercise their franchise.
A three-tier security is in place, aided by CCTV surveillance and deployment of special squads in sensitive areas, police officials said.
The polls are being conducted under revised norms for Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservations, and required extensive delimitation and restructuring of wards in several districts.
The ruling BJP, Opposition Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have emerged as the key players, while All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is also contesting in several places.
Among notable candidates are former Gujarat-cadre IPS officer M L Ninama, ex-radio jockey Abha Desai, and former AAP MLA Bhupendra Bhayani.
Ninama is contesting from the Odh seat in Shamlaji taluka for the Arvalli district panchayat elections, while the BJP has nominated Bhayani from the Bhesan seat of the Junagadh district panchayat.
Desai, popularly known as RJ Abha, is contesting as a Congress candidate from ward number 10 of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation.
Elections are also being held for the first time in nine newly-created municipal corporations, including Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar.
Counting of votes will take place on April 28.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel campaigned extensively for the BJP.
The AAP had taken the lead over other parties in launching the campaign, with its national convenor, Arvind Kejriwal, and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann addressing several rallies across Gujarat.
In a first for AAP, the Kejriwal-led party is contesting around 5,000 seats in local polls.
Other contestants include the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Independents.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi campaigned in the final phase, addressing public meetings in Ahmedabad and Bhuj.
In March 2021, the BJP scored a landslide win in the local polls in Gujarat, winning 6,236 out of 8,470 seats across various municipalities and establishing a wide gap with rival Congress.
The BJP had then dominated all six municipal corporations, besides 81 municipalities, 32 district panchayats, and 231 taluka panchayats.
